


The Prophetess

by phantomthief_fee



Series: The Assistant [7]
Category: Bendy and the Ink Machine
Genre: Alternate Universe, Implied/Referenced Character Death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-02-10
Updated: 2020-12-20
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:54:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 10,324
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22618216
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phantomthief_fee/pseuds/phantomthief_fee
Summary: The Prophet has fallen and his Acolyte has risen to take his place. She will succeed where her Prophet has failed. She will set them free.
Relationships: Allison Angel & Tom, Allison Angel/Tom
Series: The Assistant [7]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/883020
Comments: 18
Kudos: 12





	1. Prologue

I drew the Prophetess [here](https://queenofcats17.tumblr.com/post/189075126255/i-drew-the-prophetess-with-her-veil-lifted-for). The original [picrew](https://queenofcats17.tumblr.com/post/188938773615/so-this-picrew-is-amazing-and-gave-me-a-creepy-as) is here

* * *

_She should never have left his side. Especially when the Angel had been so volatile. But he’d said he could handle it. He’d told her not to worry. He would deal with the Angel. And she’d trusted him. Surely, her Prophet knew what he was doing. So, she’d gone and put up the cutouts as he’d asked. He knew what he was doing. He always knew what he was doing._

_But he hadn’t come back._

_Because **she** had killed him. _

**_The Angel._ **

**_She_ ** _had come on the loudspeaker, proclaiming that the Prophet was dead. **She’d** sounded so proud of herself. It had made her blood boil. **She’d** offered the Acolyte a chance to be at **her** side. To be **her** songbird. _

_Her already fractured mind had shattered. Mad with grief, she’d descended as far as she could go. She just wanted to be away. She knew what happened to the ink creatures when their hearts were taken. They didn’t come back. They were gone. For good._

_Anyone who got in her way fell to her ax, stolen from the Prophet. She felt nothing at inflicting the violence upon the hapless Butcher Gang clones that came before her. She saw no Searchers. Even in their mindless state, they knew better than to get in her way while she was in such a state. She had hoped the violence would make her feel something. But it did not. She felt only grief._

_Finally, after gods knew how long, she found herself at the very bottom of the studio. The Administration level. There, she found the tape of Thomas Connor detailing the creation of the creature known now as the Ink Demon. The gears began to turn in her head._

_“My Lord!” She called out into the darkness. “I see now. You are as much a victim as I am. Please, let us be partners. We will work together to defeat the Angel.”_

_And the Demon answered, blessing her in a way it had never blessed her Prophet. It appeared to her. She bowed her head, but her Lord forced her to face it. It reached into its body, pulling out a glob of ink. Then it thrust the glob into her body._

_She screamed as the ink tore through her, changing her. **Blessing** her. She was connected to the Demon now, its true prophetess._

_When she recovered, it pressed an ink heart into her hands._

_It didn’t even need to say anything. She knew what she needed to do. She consumed the ink heart and some clarity returned to her mind._

_“I will succeed where my prophet failed.” She proclaimed, taking up her ax once more. “I will set us free.”_

_She consumed ink hearts torn from Butcher Gang clones and ascended, taking on the role of the mentor she so adored. She preached salvation and freedom to the congregation that was not her own, and they listened._

_She **would** set them free. _


	2. Chapter 1

The loop hadn’t seemed strange to Henry. Not at first.

The initial beats were the same. He turned on the machine. He was chased by the Demon. He fell into the Music Department. There wasn’t anything different until he came to the part where he trudged through the flooded hallway for the first time. He eased himself into the ink, beginning his trudge. But it wasn’t the familiar figure of Sammy he saw crossing the doorway. It looked like a woman. One in a long black dress with a yellow veil over her head. The familiar line still escaped his lips, but he almost stopped in his tracks at the unfamiliar sight.

“Where did she go?” He whispered as he rounded the corner and found himself face to face with the cutout and pentagram.

“Guess it’s gonna be one of _those_ loops.” He tried not to groan. These kinds of loops where Joey decided to “shake things up” didn’t tend to be all that fun for him. He didn’t know what to expect and usually ended up dying more often. But it wasn’t like he had a choice, so he continued.

It was upon turning on the power to the Music Department that things truly changed. Instead of Searchers appearing from the puddles, Lost Ones pulled themselves free.

“Who are you?” One demanded, advancing toward him with a board in its hands. “Where did you come from?”

Henry just stood there, his mouth hanging open. This…was not what he’d been expecting. How were they here? Had they traveled through the ink? Why had they left their room on the lower floors?

“Answer me!” The leader demanded.

Henry still couldn’t form any words. He could have spoken if he’d wanted to, this wasn’t like when he was in Joey’s kitchen and physically couldn’t, he just…didn’t know **what** to say. The Lost Ones had never spoken to him before. He’d heard one speak, but that was just to lament their predicament. They’d never been this…coherent.

“Should we sacrifice him to our Lord?” Another Lost One asked. “That’s what the Prophet always did with trespassers.”

“But the Prophet’s not here anymore.” A third Lost One chimed in.

“Tie him up,” the leader said. “I’ll go get the Prophetess. She’ll know what to do.”

Henry offered no resistance as they dragged him out of the main room and into the room where Sammy usually sacrificed him. They took his ax and tied him to the pole he usually got tied to. This was familiar at least. He took a few deep breaths to try and calm himself. Everything would be fine. No matter what happened, he could handle himself.

He needed to take stock of the situation. The Lost Ones had more autonomy now. They moved more freely around the studio and seemed like they had more control over themselves. They’d said the Prophet wasn’t around anymore. They were following the Prophetess now. But who could that be? Would they try to sacrifice him like Sammy always did?

Suddenly, he heard footsteps approaching. Henry stiffened, pressing himself back against the pole. The shutter opposite him began to open. It was the one Sammy always opened when he was about to sacrifice Henry to the Ink Demon. But there was no shaking, no ink veins. It wasn’t the Demon who stepped out either, but a woman. She wore a long black dress that dragged on the floor with long black sleeves that covered her hands. Her head and face were covered by a yellow cloth that might have been meant to serve as a veil. He could see her eyes glowing from behind it. She held an ax in her right hand.

“My apologies for your rough treatment, my little lamb,” she said as she approached. “You must understand how rare visitors are here. My congregation still aren’t sure what to do with them.” Her voice was unfamiliar, strange and airy with a mournful undertone.

“Are you going to kill me?” Henry asked. That was what Sammy always did. A sacrifice for his Lord. 

“Heavens no!” The woman sounded horrified. “That would serve no purpose for me.”

She crossed the room, setting her ax down beside him and looking him over. At least, he thought she was looking him over. It was hard to tell with the cloth covering her face.

“I suppose I should introduce myself,” she said after a moment or two. “You may call me the Prophetess.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Henry said slowly.

“And you as well.”

Henry allowed himself to relax a bit. The Prophetess was much calmer than Sammy had been. He couldn’t remember the last loop where he’d managed to talk to Sammy. Maybe there hadn’t been one. Still…Who was the Prophetess? Why would Joey add in a new character now?

Suddenly, the room began to shake in the way that signaled the arrival of the Ink Demon. Henry began to panic, struggling against his bonds. But the Prophetess remained calm, turning as the demon hauled itself from a bubbling puddle.

“Hello, my Lord,” she said. “Is there something you need of me?”

The Ink Demon looked toward Henry, a low growl echoing from its inky chest. 

“You know him?” The Prophetess looked back toward him. He could make out her eyes glowing beneath the ink-stained veil. The Ink Demon growled again, leaning closer to Henry. 

“Henry?” The Prophetess let out a gasp. “Henry Stein?”

“Yeah?”

For a moment, all was still. Then the Prophetess let a childish squeal of joy, flipping up her veil and shoving her face into his. A cold weight settled in Henry’s stomach. He recognized this face. 

Henry had only met Cordelia Bell once or twice. She’d started working at the studio shortly after Henry had left as a sort of assistant to Sammy. She’d later been made his secretary from what Henry had heard. She’d struck him as a compassionate young woman with a good head on her shoulders, if a bit too kind for her own good. Judging from her lack of coffin and infrequent appearances in Joey’s story, Henry assumed her real-world counterpart had escaped from Joey’s influence.

But here, right now, Henry was face to face with her. The top half of her face was covered in ink, dripping down from her hairline. Her eyes were the uniform golden circles of the Lost Ones, but turned into half-moons by her unnaturally wide grin. It was so wide he could see her gums, black as ink. Her hair hung in strings around her face, limp and soaked in ink. 

“Henry Stein.” Her voice was shrill with glee. “You are the answer to our prayers!”

“I am?”

“My Lord can only destroy.” Cordelia gestured to the Ink Demon. “He cannot give us our bodies back. But you…You can create! You can set us free!” She twirled with delight, although her dress remained stuck to her.

“I…Guess I could do that,” Henry said slowly. He’d never tried. It did stand to reason that he could have the ability to fix their bodies to a certain extent. He couldn’t imagine Joey would be too happy, though. 

“Oh, you will,” Cordelia said, turning back to him. “You will set us free, Henry.” She picked up the ink-stained ax, cutting his bonds and beginning to drag him. 

“Where are you taking me?” He asked. 

“To the Machine," she replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

“It’s pretty far down, isn’t it?” She wasn’t planning on taking him all the way down to the Machine, was she? It had taken him forever to get down there in every other loop.

“Well, the large one is, yes,” Cordelia agreed, headed toward the stairs that let out of the Music Department. “But surely the smaller one will do for this.” The Ink Demon trailed behind them, still growling at Henry. 

“He can fix you,” Cordelia chided. “You’ll be the Little Devil Darling you want to be!”

The Ink Demon grumbled, although it seemed to watch Henry with renewed interest. 

“Where’s Sammy?” Henry asked. It wasn’t the first time he’d been through a loop where Sammy wasn’t in this role. Sometimes he was swapped out for a different former employee. But Joey liked having Sammy play the insane Prophet. This was the first time Cordelia had taken center stage. 

Cordelia stopped, causing Henry to run into her back. 

“He’s gone,” she said, her voice low and tight. “The Angel took him.”

“Took him?” Henry echoed. 

“Took him,” Cordelia repeated. “Captured him and took his heart. All in the pursuit of her ‘perfection’.” Her voice became a growl, her grip on the ax tightening. “She deserves death. I thought she was my friend! I thought she loved me!” 

She swung the ax into the wall. Henry jumped back a bit, crashing into the Ink Demon. The Demon growled, shoving him off. 

“Susie was supposed to be my friend!” Cordelia howled, still swinging the ax at everything she could reach. She stopped in front of a Bendy cutout, her ax suspended above the grinning cardboard face. She stood there for a moment or two, motionless, then straightened and lowered her ax.

“He’s gone,” she repeated. In her rampage, her veil had fallen off. She knelt and picked it up, draping it over her head once more.

“I’m…I’m sorry,” Henry said slowly.

“That’s just how it is here.” Cordelia began to walk again. Henry frowned, lingering for a moment or two longer before the Ink Demon growled and shoved him forward.

The three of them ascended the studio floors to reach the Ink Machine on the first level. Cordelia recovered quickly enough, beginning to chatter about how wonderful it was that Henry was here now and they had a chance to fix things. Henry stayed quiet, his gaze darting between the Ink Demon and Cordelia. He hadn’t noticed it before, but the ink veins that usually followed the Demon weren’t there. Was the Demon calmer in Cordelia’s presence? He didn’t feel like asking, especially since the Demon still didn’t seem to like him.

“Here we are~” Cordelia sang when they entered the Ink Machine room. She threw the switch and the Ink Machine rose from the depths. Humming to herself, she then began to clamber down the ladder. Henry hesitated momentarily before following her. He’d never actually gone down here before. The Ink Demon disappeared into a puddle and reappeared near the machine where Cordelia was fiddling with the switches.

“How did this work?” She was muttering to herself.

“So…Um…What do you want me to do?” Henry asked.

“I’m going to turn on the machine and you’re going to reach into the puddles and pull out Sammy,” Cordelia explained, removing her veil so that she could see the dials properly. “And then you’re going to fix him.”

“Fix…him?” Henry echoed.

“Yes. Fix him.” Cordelia said. “Make him look normal. Or as normal as he can look while made of ink.”

“I…see.” Henry could feel the icy weight of fear developing in his stomach. He didn’t even know if he could pull Sammy out of the puddles in the first place. He’d never tried to attempt anything even close to that. But he couldn’t exactly run. He could feel the Demon at his back, its presence reminding him he had nowhere to run nor hide.

“I just need to figure out how to turn this on…” Cordelia let out a frustrated growl, kicking the side of the machine. The Demon moved out from behind Henry to try and help her. Together, the two of them began to fiddle with the switches on the side. Henry took a few steps back toward the ladder.

“I…I’m not sure I can do what you want me to,” he admitted. “I’ve never tried anything like that before and I think I’d end up disappointing you.”

Cordelia stopped what she’d been doing, lowering her arms. “Excuse me?” Her voice was quiet, but there was an underlying edge that made Henry rather worried.

“I don’t think I can help you,” Henry repeated, trying to keep his voice from shaking.

Slowly, Cordelia turned to face him. Her expression was hard to read, but Henry was certain that she was not happy.

“You **need** to help me,” Cordelia said, her voice suddenly getting dark. The ink around her began to boil and bubble. The Ink Demon growled, the telltale ink veins appearing on the walls.

“You’re the Creator.” She advanced toward him, skeletal arms made of ink clawing their way from the puddles beside her. “You’re the only one who can put this right. You’re the only one who can bring Sammy back.”

“I don’t know how!” Henry tried to insist, but it was like she hadn’t even heard him.

“You’re supposed to be the good one!” Cordelia’s voice rose to a screech. “You’re supposed to be better than Joey! You **have** to help!” Ink dripped over her eyes and horns began to rise from her hair.

Panicking, Henry scrambled up the ladder and ran. He could hear the Ink Demon roaring and Cordelia shrieking behind him, but he didn’t stop. He kept going until he managed to get to the area where he usually met Boris. Only then did he stop, the door slamming shut behind him as it always did. He leaned back against the door, out of breath.

“I’m so screwed,” he gasped.


	3. Chapter 2

They lost Henry when he dropped down a hole in the entrance hall. The hole that had opened up when he’d begun the loop and escaped the Ink Demon. Cordelia slumped to the ground, her energy fading.

“Why?” She moaned, ineffectually beating at the ground with her fists. “Why did he say no?”

She began to sob, burying her face in her hands. She wanted Sammy back so badly. He was the closest thing to family she had in this shit-hole. He was the only thing that had kept her hopeful in all those long years. True, he had been the one who had thrown her into the ink, but that hadn’t been his fault. He hadn’t been in his right mind.

Sammy had been her anchor, her reason to keep going. He had kept her safe, gave her a purpose. Granted, she hadn’t completely believed in his cause of the Ink Demon, but it had given her _something_ to believe in. She’d believed in him. She’d believed in **Sammy**.

Joey had taken him from her once, turning the clever and sarcastic man she’d so admired into a shell of his former self. She’d been forced to watch his descent. The drinking ink, the paranoia, the violent outbursts toward other people. She’d watched him murder their coworkers to please his “lord”. She’d spent years by his side here, but it hadn’t been him. Not really.

And now Alice had taken him from her again, sending him back to the Puddles. She hadn’t even been there to see him die. She’d just heard his screams over the damnable speaker system.

She had to keep going for her congregation now, but she felt so hopeless. So empty. She just wanted him back.

The Ink Demon crouched beside her, nuzzling its face against hers. Cordelia turned, burying her face in its chest and letting it wrap its arms around her. It had developed a fondness for her since meeting her on the Administration level. That despair and rage in her were familiar to it. She understood.

“Oh! Wait!” Her face lit up and she pulled away. “He didn’t say he **wouldn’t** help! He just said he didn’t know if he could!” Almost as soon as her expression brightened, though, it fell once more.

“I did it again.” She whispered. “I jumped to conclusions and I made everything worse.”

The Ink Demon nuzzled her face once more, letting out a comforting purr. It knew exactly why her mood shifted so quickly. She wasn’t meant to have a piece of it inside of her. It confused her mind. The Ink Demon was a being of pain and despair. Having a part of it made Cordelia more like it.

“Thank you.” She stroked its head. “You’re very sweet.”

The Ink Demon made a happy groaning sound, bumping its head against hers.

“I know, I know. You’re very cute.” She laughed.

The Ink Demon shifted into its more bestial form, flopping on the ground like a cat would and exposing its belly. Cordelia couldn’t help but smile, kneeling to give the Ink Demon the belly-rubs it so wanted. She cooed to it in the way one would to a treasured pet, pressing kisses to its inky belly. It almost might have been adorable had it not been for the scene around them and the Ink Demon’s monstrous appearance.

Eventually, Cordelia decided that was enough and got to her feet, dusting her dress off. As she stood, her gaze was drawn to the wooden door at the end of the entryway. The door Henry always entered through. The door that she knew led to Somewhere Else. The Ink Demon know what (and who) was on the other side of that door, and so she had a vague idea.

Edging around the gaping hole, she stood in front of the door. She could the faint sound of a radio playing on the other side and someone whistling. She knew who this whistle belonged to. She had heard it so many times. She heard it in her nightmares.

“I’m coming for you Joey~” She sang, pressing her cheek against the wood of the door. “You can’t hide forever.”

On the other side of the door, Joey Drew shuddered as her voice pierced the room.

“I’m going to find a way out of here, Joey,” she said, her nails digging into the soft wood of the door, her gold eyes wide. Had she possessed any pupils or irises she likely would have looked quite demented. “And when I do? I’m going to make you pay for everything.” Her voice dropped to a growl.

Cordelia had never had any illusions about the position she’d been in at Joey Drew Studios. Both parents dead, the sole provider of income for her house, never graduated high school, an extended family who were all either dead or not talking to her. She couldn’t have afforded to lose that job. Joey had known that. Of course he’d known. Half the other employees at the studio had had nowhere to go as well.

That was what Joey did. He collected the most desperate people he could, the people no one would miss if they disappeared, and made sure they couldn’t leave him. She’d known only one person would miss her if Joey had killed her. Roy would raise a ruckus, he probably already had at this point, but there wasn’t anything he could do. Joey had always been so careful. There would never be any proof he’d done anything.

He had used every single one of them. No one had ever had the power to stand up to him or stop him. But now…Now **she** did. She had the Ink Demon on her side. Even Joey couldn’t defeat the Ink Demon. If she managed to get out of the studio with the Ink Demon, there was no way Joey could stop them. She was sure of that.

“We should find Henry.” Cordelia turned away from the door. “I want to apologize and ask him more…nicely.” Then she jumped down the hole and into the lower levels.

The Ink Demon made a grumbling sort of noise but didn’t argue, following her down the hole. 


	4. Chapter 3

Thankfully, Henry managed to meet up with Boris. He’d never been so happy to see Boris before, hugging the wolf tightly and refusing to let go for a long time. Boris seemed a little confused as to why Henry was so upset, but he still accepted the hug and happily took Henry to his safehouse. The safehouse and Boris gave Henry a bit of comfort, but he knew this comfort was temporary. Things had changed here. This loop wouldn’t be the same.

He spent a few days in the safehouse with Boris, enjoying it as best he could. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t put his worries from his mind. The next area was Alice’s. Would she still be there? Or did the Ink Demon’s new connection to Cordelia allow him access to Alice’s level? He was sure Cordelia and the Ink Demon would have killed Alice if they’d had the chance. Maybe they already had. How would he continue then? Would he just be stuck?

The longer he spent in the safehouse, the more he worried. The story was clearly out of Joey’s control this time, which was both good and bad. Good in the sense that Joey was probably going crazy that the story had deviated, but bad in the sense that Henry had no idea what to expect. Still, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of petty delight at the idea of Joey’s perfect little plan being ruined.

After a few “days” of being constantly on edge, Henry finally decided to leave. Boris, as usual, offered little resistance, asking only for soup to provide the lever for the door. Once out of the safe house, things continued as usual. Through the dark passageway with the hissing pipes, separating from Boris to open the door, going into the Heavenly Toys area.

As Henry entered the Heavenly Toys lobby, he strained his ears to listen for Alice’s humming. There was nothing. A heavy stillness hung in the air, pressing in on Henry from all sides. He took a deep breath and kept going. Fix the toy machine, rotating the shelves to get into the meet and greet area for Alice. He expected the song would begin playing when he entered. But it didn’t. The silence continued. The televisions didn’t come on, the music didn’t play. He was alone. The shutter lead inwards was up, at least.

“Guess I won’t see her here,” Henry said to himself.

He chose the path of the Angel, mostly because he didn’t feel like slogging through the ink-filled room of the Demon path. As usual, he met up with Boris, who surprised him with the Bendy cutout. Through the storage room, splitting up to throw the switches. The Piper jumped out at him from the poster and he dispatched it. And then they were at the elevator.

Henry paused at the railing, staring down at the elevator. He figured he probably couldn’t get down to Level S without the elevator crashing. There wasn’t a button for it on the panel. At least not as far as he’d seen.

As he considered his options, the speakers crackled to life. Boris jumped at the sound, grabbing on to Henry’s arm.

“Henry!” Cordelia’s voice came through the speakers. “There you are! I’ve been looking everywhere for you!”

Henry stiffened, his grip on the railing tightening. So, he probably wouldn’t be seeing Alice in this area.

“Oh! And you found a Boris! Hello there! I hope you’ve been taking good care of Henry,” Cordelia continued. She sounded so…happy. As if none of what had occurred on the first floor had taken place. He felt like he was getting a glimpse of the person she’d once been.

“Where…Where’s Alice?” He finally asked.

“She’s not here,” Cordelia replied, an edge entering her voice. “Can you come down to Level 9? I want to talk to you.”

Henry glanced at Boris, who was still holding on to his arm. Boris whimpered, holding tighter. Henry closed his eyes, letting out a heavy sigh. He didn’t want to have another confrontation with Cordelia, but he didn’t have much of a choice.

“Alright,” he said.

“Great!” Cordelia’s voice was light and happy once more. “Just take the elevator down! I’ll be in Alice’s little lab.” The speaker switched off, leaving Boris and Henry in silence once more.

“I guess we’re doing this, huh?” Henry smiled wearily at Boris. Boris nodded dejectedly. He seemed to understand they had little choice as well.

The elevator ride was uneventful, and Level 9 didn’t look all that different. Henry wasn’t sure whether to be relieved or worried. On one hand, there were no signs of a struggle or a bloody murder. On the other hand…It all looked too untouched. He stepped out, Boris trailing tentatively behind him. As he approached the doors below the massive sign of Alice, they shuddered open. Boris latched on to Henry again, holding his arm as the two of them ventured inside.

Alice’s area was the same carnival of horrors that Henry remembered. Dead Borises and Butcher Gang clones strewn about like discarded toys.

“Stay here,” Henry said to Boris. “I’ll go talk to her.” Boris whimpered, grabbing Henry’s sleeve and shaking his head.

“It’ll be fine,” Henry assured him with a smile. Although he wasn’t sure how much he believed that himself. Boris didn’t look sure either, but he let go, allowing Henry to move away, making his way across the boards spanning the ink.

Cordelia was in the room where Henry had first spoken with Alice face to face. She stood right in front of the glass, her veil lifted so that he could see her face. The Ink Demon lounged on a table nearby like a cat, watching Henry with its ever-present smile.

“You came!” Cordelia clapped her hands together, her whole face lighting up. “Oh, I’m so glad!”

“Not like I had much of a choice,” Henry said, shrugging slightly.

“Oh, come on. It’s not like I was forcing you.” Cordelia’s face arranged itself into a rather adorable pout. “I just wanted to apologize for the way I acted before.”

“A…Apologize?” Henry asked slowly.

“Yes, apologize!” Cordelia brightened again. “I really shouldn’t have lost my temper like that. I was jumping to conclusions, and that wasn’t fair to you. I’m so sorry.” She sounded genuine. And her expression looked genuine as well. 

Henry felt like he was getting whiplash. One minute, he was speaking to a polite and kind young woman and the next he was getting screamed at by a crazed Prophetess. He glanced at the Demon, who seemed bored by this conversation.

“It’s okay,” Henry said, keeping an eye on the Ink Demon. “The ink…does things to a person, right?”

“It does.” Cordelia agreed, her face falling. It was one of the most genuine expressions Henry had seen on her face. She looked so tired.

“I’m sorry.” He moved closer, putting a hand to the glass. “I didn’t know Joey would do all this.”

The Ink Demon rolled his eyes, or did something similar to it, lip curling in an approximation of a sneer.

“It’s not your fault,” Cordelia said. “None of us knew he’d do something like this.” Her gaze was distant, as though she were seeing something only she could see.

“Besides, he was probably as awful to you as he was to everyone else,” she added with a weak laugh.

“Yeah, he was.” Henry laughed weakly as well.

There was a moment of silence. Cordelia seemed calmer now. Maybe…Maybe he could ask.

“Where’s Alice?”

Immediately, he knew that this had been the wrong decision. Cordelia’s expression darkened, her eyes snapping up to him.

“I told you. She’s not here,” she said icily.

“But…Where **is** she?” Henry’s voice wavered, becoming uncertain.

“Why does it matter?” Cordelia snapped, her expression darkening further. “She’s not going to help you!”

“I know, but-”

“I told you what she did. You’ve **seen** what she did!” She yelled, the shadows beginning to swirl. “Why do you still want to see her?!” Behind her, the Ink Demon slid off the table, leering at Henry, its smile widening. It had been waiting for this.

Henry took a step back, putting his hands up. “Wait, I-”

“If you find her, she’ll just kill that Boris you’re so attached to!” Cordelia cut him off. “She’ll take him away from you just like she took Sammy!” Her veil was beginning to rise as horns grew from her head. The whites of her eyes were turning as black as the ink dripping from her hairline, although her irises remained that glowing gold.

“I just-” Henry tried to speak, only to be cut off once more.

“Why won’t you help me?!” She wailed, slamming her fists against the glass of the window. “Why do you want **_her_**?!” The Ink Demon loomed larger, watching Henry with what he could only describe as hunger.

Henry didn’t wait to see what would happen. He turned and ran. He could hear the shattering of glass and Cordelia screaming behind him, but he didn’t stop. He grabbed Boris and dragged him out of the room, practically throwing the wolf over his shoulder. The ink on the ground bubbled, Searchers dragging themselves out of the puddles as the walls shook. Henry didn’t try to fight them. Fighting them would slow them down too much.

Reaching the elevator, Henry frantically pressed the button for Norman’s level. He’d never seen the Ink Demon there. They’d be fine. They just needed to hide for a little. The Searchers were dragging themselves toward the elevator. They would have no problem getting through the grating.

“Come on, come on,” Henry whispered, willing the elevator to begin its descent. Boris cowered in the corner.

“WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU’RE GOING?!” Cordelia’s voice screeched through the speakers.

The elevator began to plummet. Despite himself, Henry breathed a sigh of relief. At least now he’d be able to continue the story.

“YOU’RE GOING TO BRING SAMMY BACK!” Cordelia continued to scream. “YOU’RE THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN! I’M GOING TO MAKE YOU DO IT! EVEN IF IT’S THE LAST THING I DO!”

The elevator hit the bottom, and everything was mercifully black.


	5. Chapter 4

Henry woke up in a safehouse, his whole body aching. He groaned to himself. He’d forgotten just how awful the elevator crash was. It was certainly better than being in an elevator crash in the real world, but it still hurt like Hell.

“Welcome back to the land of the living, Henry.” A voice came from his right. He sat bolt upright, immediately recognizing the voice.

Seated on a cot to his right was the woman who called herself Alice Angel. She looked different. Her left eye was still a gaping chasm, although the malformations on the left side of her face had considerably lessened. She had two scars where the gaps in her cheek had previously been and her jawline was a far more normal shape. Her hair was tied back in a bun and she wore an ink-stained apron and a pair of rubber gloves that went up to her elbows.

“W-What are you doing here?!” Henry demanded, scooting back as far as he could and displacing some wrenches in the process.

Upon hearing the commotion, Boris appeared from behind a wall, his face lighting up at the sight of Henry. He launched himself onto the old animator, wrapping him in a hug and nuzzling his face against Henry’s.

“See? I told you he’d be fine,” Alice said, folding her arms with a triumphant smile. Boris stuck his tongue out at her, then went back to cuddling Henry.

Henry relaxed a bit, although he was still confused. He was glad he and Boris were both alright, but didn’t know why Alice wasn’t trying to kill him. And, as he looked around, he realized that he was in Allison and Tom’s safe house.

“Did you bring me here?” Henry asked, looking over at Alice.

“No, Allison and Tom did,” she replied. “They found you passed out in Grant’s old office with your little friend standing guard. Allison said she didn’t want to just leave you there.” She laughed softly, the corners of her eyes crinkling as she smiled. “She can be too nice for her own good sometimes. I would be worried if she wasn’t so good with a sword.”

Henry was baffled. He’d never seen Alice genuinely smile before, nor speak of Allison in such a positive way. She seemed almost…happy.

All he could say was, “You’re…with them?”

“Well, I’m working with them,” Alice replied. 

Henry stared at her for a long time.

“…Why do you keep staring at me?” Alice asked, moving away slightly. “I know my face looks strange, but it’s really rude to stare.” She shifted uncomfortably under his gaze, instinctively reaching up to cover the deformities on her face.

“Why are you being so nice? Why aren’t you trying to hurt me?”

Alice stiffened at the question, hunching her shoulders and turning away.

“I’m not that person anymore,” she whispered, shaking her head. Her breathing picked up a bit as she wrapped her arms around herself. “I’m not Alice. I’m not. My name is Susie Campbell.” She whimpered, curling into herself, and hugging her knees to her chest.

“Shoot.” Henry gently moved Boris off his lap, earning a huff from Boris, sitting down beside Susie. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that.”

But Susie didn’t seem to hear him. Her whole body shook as she took deep gasping breaths.

“I’m not a monster,” she whispered, starting to rock as she pulled at her hair. “My name is Susie Campbell. I’m not a monster. I’m not a monster!” Her voice rose as she grew agitated. “I’m not a monster! I’m Susie Campbell! I’m Susie Campbell!”

“Susie!” Henry grabbed her by the shoulder.

Susie’s eyes went wide, her voice dying in her throat. Her hair had been disturbed from its bun, leaving her looking wild and disheveled. She removed her hair tie, letting her hair fall and form a curtain covering her face.

“I’m sorry you had to see that,” she whispered. She sounded on the verge of tears.

“Why are **you** sorry?” Henry asked. “It was my fault.”

“You were right to ask, though,” Susie insisted, a slightly panicked tone entering her voice. “I mean, I probably **would** have killed you before.” She laughed weakly. “I **was** a horrible person.” Almost immediately, Boris moved to sit near her, starting to lick her face.

“Hey!” Susie laughed, gently trying to push him away. “Stop it!”

“I think you’ve just gotta let him comfort you.” Henry couldn’t help but laugh as well.

Susie made a big show of throwing her hands up, letting Boris continue to lick her. Boris comforted her for a few minutes before returning to lay on Henry’s lap.

“Thanks.” Susie smiled. “I needed that.”

“It’s what he does.” Henry laughed, patting Boris.

“So, how did you manage to piss Cordelia off?” Susie asked, clearly eager to get the conversation off herself. She removed her rubber gloves and her apron, folding them and setting them aside.

Henry hesitated, stroking Boris’ head. The cartoon wolf made a concerned noise and burrowed closer. Henry smiled to himself, scratching Boris behind the ears.

“She wanted me to reach into the ink, pull Sammy out, and fix him,” he said. “But I told her I didn’t know if I could do that. I don’t even know if he’s **there** anymore. You took his heart, after all.”

“Oh, he’s there,” Susie replied. “Taking a heart from an ink creature just undoes the stability of their body. Nothing ever really **_dies_** here. When I took his heart…” She paused, taking a deep shaking breath and folding her hands in her lap. “All it did was undo his stability and send him back to…that place.”

Henry’s eyes widened. “So, I… _could_ get him out?”

“I mean, if anyone could, it **would** be you, Henry.” Susie leaned back on the cot.

For a moment, Henry was surprised. Then he remembered that Susie had known who he was every run he’d been through.

“I guess.” He laughed weakly. Now that the rush was wearing off, he was starting to feel exhausted once more. His body was aching again, reminding him that he’d just been in an elevator crash.

“Why don’t you get some more rest?” Susie suggested, noticing his growing exhaustion. “I’ll wake you up when Tom and Allison get back and we can talk this whole thing over.

“Sure.” Henry yawned, turning away to lay back down on the cot. Boris curled up around him.

“Thanks, bud,” Henry mumbled, patting Boris’ head.

He fell asleep with his face buried in Boris’s fur.

.

As promised, Susie did indeed wake Henry up when Allison and Tom returned. They looked mostly the same, although there were some changes. Allison was wearing overalls over her usual dress, as well as having her hair in a braid. But Tom looked the most different. He looked much more humanoid than in previous runs. Although he still had dog ears and a bit of a muzzle, his face was recognizable as something human, with a distinction between hair and face. His body was more human as well, with a muscular form in place of the thin rubberhose limbs and round torso. He wore a shirt under his overalls, workman’s gloves, and a heavy toolbelt.

“You’re looking better,” Allison remarked when she saw Henry sitting up with Boris at his side.

“Thought you were dead,” Tom remarked. His voice sounded as it had on the tapes.

“I’m hard to kill.” Henry smiled weakly.

“Sounds about right.” Susie couldn’t help but giggle.

“So.” Allison sat down beside Susie, her expression shifting to one of guarded interest. “What are you doing here?”

“We don’t normally get visitors,” Tom added, standing beside Allison. He looked slightly less distrustful than he had in past encounters, but it was still clear he wasn’t thrilled by Henry’s presence.

“Uh…How much do you know already?” Henry asked. “About me, I mean.”

“Susie says you’re Henry Stein,” Tom answered. “Drew’s business partner.” A growl entered his voice as he narrowed his eyes.

Boris moved closer to Henry, letting out a whine.

“That’s me, although I haven’t been his ‘business partner’ for 30 years now. You couldn’t argue I wasn’t even his partner to begin with. Just his pawn.” The words held a renewed bitterness due to the situation he’d found himself in. Even now, he was still dancing on Joey’s puppet strings.

“That doesn’t tell us what you’re doing here,” Allison said. Her voice and expression had softened a tad upon hearing the venom in Henry’s voice.

“Joey sent me a letter,” Henry explained. “He said he had something to show me. But when I showed up, all I found was this place.” He gestured around. “Just a lot of things that wanted to kill me and no Joey.”

Boris whined again, nuzzling into Henry’s chest. Henry smiled softly, petting the wolf’s head gently.

“And how’d you piss off the girl?” Tom leaned in. “She seems pretty keen on having your head.”

Henry didn’t need to ask who Tom meant. He tensed at the memory of his confrontation with Cordelia, instinctively pulling Boris closer. He wasn’t sure if he should tell them about his attempt to adhere to the story. They wouldn’t understand. They’d probably think he was crazy if he tried to explain the loops.

Thankfully, Susie rescued him. “She asked him to drag Sammy out of the dark puddles,” she jumped in. “He wasn’t sure if he could do it and she took it as a refusal.”

Allison and Tom exchanged a knowing glance, their expressions pitying and worried. 

“That was the first time,” Henry said. “The second time, I was looking for Susie because I thought she might know a way out.”

“And when you asked about me, she freaked out…” Susie concluded, her face falling.

“Yeah.”

They were all silent for a bit. Tom and Allison each seemed to be piecing together the situation in their heads, while Henry and Susie wallowed in their own emotions. Henry was the first to speak again.

“The Ink Demon seemed…happy to see her upset at me,” he said. “It seemed happy to see her get angry. Do you know why that is?”

“My guess is he doesn’t want to share his new toy,” Tom replied.

Henry stared blankly at him. Tom sighed, running a hand over his face.

“The demon’s got the emotional state of a kid,” he explained. “Right now, he’s pretty attached to Cordelia. My guess is that he doesn’t want Sammy to come back right now because he wants Cordelia all to himself. Like a kid who doesn’t want to share their favorite toy or their mom’s attention.”

“It would be cute if the results weren’t so destructive.” Allison shook her head.

“How bad is it?” Susie asked, a hand on Allison’s shoulder.

Allison bit her lip. “It’s…Not good,” she said, resting her hand on Susie’s. “She’s got the Searchers and Lost Ones all worked up.”

“She’s on the warpath,” Tom added solemnly.

“Oh dear.”

“We need to do something,” Henry said without thinking.

“I agree, but I’m not sure what.” Allison laid back on the cot, letting out a long exhale. “Talking seems out of the question at this point.”

“She’s not going to listen to reason when she’s worked up like this.” Tom nodded to Susie, who scooted over to allow him to sit down.

Henry frowned, continuing to pat Boris’ head as he thought. Boris seemed to have fallen asleep, but it was hard to tell. He needed to do something. If he didn’t, he had a feeling everyone was going to end up dead. And how would he end the loop then?

“Maybe I _could_ try to get Sammy,” he suggested. “If she wants Sammy so badly, she’ll probably calm down if he’s there, right?”

“We don’t have any guarantee of that,” Susie warned. “The Ink Demon’s twisted her mind.”

“But it’s worth a try,” Allison said, sitting up.

“And if it doesn’t, then we’ll at least have someone the Lost Ones trust on our side.” Tom sat up as well.

“Great!” Henry allowed himself a smile as he felt hope well up in his chest. “So, uh, how…How do I _get_ Sammy?”

“You’d probably need to use one of the Ink Machines,” Tom said, rubbing his chin. “Or a large pool of ink.”

“We’ll have to scout out the locations to see which is safer.” Allison laid back down. “But right now, we need to rest.”

“I’ll get some soup ready.” Tom got up, going to a different area to presumably grab some soup cans.

Having come up with a plan, Henry too laid back down, allowing himself to drift once more into sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I made a Diamond mural version of the Prophetess, like something the Lost Ones would paint.  
> https://queenofcats17.tumblr.com/post/620417835331715072/drew-a-diamond-mural-version-of-the-prophetess


	6. Chapter 5

The Ink Demon couldn’t help but feel a certain amount of joy every time he saw Henry’s face twist with fear. He never got tired of that look, no matter how many loops went by. It had been one of the few things he had been able to control in past loops. Now, though, the story was off the rails and he could do whatever it wanted to.

Or…Not quite. There were still limits. He couldn’t kill Henry or any of the major players just yet. The rules of the story were still partially in place. But the constraints Joey had placed on him about where he could go or what he could do were gone. He was far happier with this. Joey’s story had long since gone stale. Not to mention, he never got tired of spiting Joey.

Henry was still trying to follow the story, though. A poor choice. Not that the Ink Demon minded. His adherence to the story directly clashed with Cordelia’s desires. He did feel a bit bad that she kept getting so upset, but it was better this way. He didn’t want Sammy roaming the halls again with his wailing and his sermons. Sammy hadn’t understood him. Cordelia understood. Besides, if Sammy came back, then Cordelia wouldn’t care about the Demon anymore.

He wanted the Prophetess all to himself. He wanted her love and tenderness, her gentle touch. She treated him with the sort of kindness no one had ever shown him before. Even Tom had abandoned him in the end, locking him away to satisfy Joey.

But Cordelia hadn’t abandoned him.

She **wouldn’t** abandon him.

She **loved** him.

And he didn’t want to share that love with anyone else.

He watched from the shadows outside the Lost One village as she railed and screamed about Henry’s traitorous behavior. Even as her anger and pain fueled him, gave him more of an identity and a personality, his heart ached at seeing her so distraught. But it was better this way, he reminded himself. If Sammy came back, Cordelia would leave him.

His tail flicked back and forth as he drummed his fingers on the soft dirt. He didn’t want to wait outside, but Cordelia had insisted. His presence would unmake the Lost Ones and Searchers, reducing them to little more than puddles of ink. She wanted to keep Sammy’s congregation “alive”, to carry on his legacy or something. Not that any of them were **truly** alive. He wasn’t going to argue, though. This was important to her. And he _did_ enjoy having worshippers.

Finally, she finished whatever she had been doing with the Lost Ones and joined him.

“He’s with _them_ ,” she spat, fresh tears in her eyes.

“ ** _Them_**?” He echoed.

“The traitors!” Cordelia yelled, turning and slashing at one of the walls. She left long gashes in the rock.

As her emotional state had declined, she’d changed to more resemble him. She was thinner, her sleeves had bled into her hands to leave them large and with long spindly clawed fingers. Horns rose from the crown of her head and the whites of her eyes were black, golden irises standing out starkly in the darkness. Inky tears ran down her gaunt cheeks.

“ ** _The angel and the wolf who took the false angel in,_** ” he concluded.

“Yes!” Cordelia wailed, covering her face with her hands. “I can’t believe this! Why would he want to go with _them_?! They’re protecting a murderer!”

Of course Tom and Allison would take Henry in. They seemed to be becoming quite the collectors when it came to traitors. He couldn’t help but be a tad delighted at the prospect of taking them on. Especially Tom. The old man would pay for abandoning him.

“ ** _It’s going to be alright,_** ” he assured her, wrapping himself protectively around her. “ ** _We’ll destroy them together. They’ll regret sheltering the traitors._** ”

Cordelia buried her face in his chest, her sobs slowly petering off.

“Maybe…Maybe if I try talking to him one more time,” she murmured. “Maybe if I can just make him understand.”

The Ink Demon tensed, trying to push down his desire to refuse the idea outright. He didn’t want her to get angry at him as well. He just had to stand back and watch Henry put his foot in his mouth again. It was inevitable that Henry would mess up and create some sort of misunderstanding. It would be fine. He wouldn’t lose his Prophetess.

“ ** _Alright,_** ” he said, holding her tighter.

She pulled back a bit, smiling up at him and patting him on the head between the horns. Her appearance was returning to normal now, or the closest thing it _could_ be to normal.

“You’re a very good boy,” she cooed.

He leaned into her touch, letting out a low purr. Cordelia’s smile widened and she laughed. He liked her laugh.

He didn’t want to lose this happiness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Check out the Prophetess redesign @darkautodraws drew:  
> https://darkautodraws.tumblr.com/post/617824892994387968/the-prophetess-redesign-thingy-based-on-the
> 
> And the redesign I did inspired by it:  
> https://queenofcats17.tumblr.com/post/617872173255802880/so-darkautodraws-drew-this-redesign-of-the


	7. Chapter 6

Tom and Allison set off to find out which Ink Machine would be safer to use, leaving Henry alone with Boris and Susie once more. Susie had been quiet for quite a bit, staring off into space as she brushed her hair. It was honestly starting to concern Henry.

“Hey…Are you okay?” He asked. “You’ve been really quiet.” Boris moved closer to her, making a whining sound and resting his head in her lap.

Susie didn’t turn to face Henry, although she did set the brush down to pet Boris’ head. “Do you know what an actress’s worst enemy is, Henry?” She asked quietly.

“I…I don’t know,” Henry replied, a tad caught off-guard by the question.

“It’s age. An actress always lives in fear of being replaced by someone younger and prettier.” She smiled wearily back at him. “It’s not as much of a problem for the stage or radio, but for the pictures and television? You have an expiration date.” She laughed weakly, which made Boris nuzzle into her hand in an attempt to comfort her. “I went into voice acting because I thought it would be safer. I thought I wouldn’t need to worry about being replaced by a newer model.”

“But Joey did it anyway.”

“Not exactly,” Susie corrected him. “But he certainly made me **think** that was what was happening. Allison wasn’t that much younger than me, but she looked more like Alice than I did. When I went to talk to Joey about it, he talked circles around me, made me think it was everyone else’s fault but his.” Her nose wrinkled in disgust. “That bastard always did know how to twist his words to make you think what he wanted you to. He turned me against the people I should have been working with.”

“I’m sorry.” Henry moved over, wrapping one arm around her. “I’m not sure what this has to do with what’s going on, though.”

Boris got up and moved to Susie’s other side to allow Henry to hug her properly.

“This is my fault,” Susie laughed weakly, gesturing around her. “If I hadn’t been so…consumed, none of this would have happened.”

“I really don’t think you’re to blame for this, Susie,” Henry tried to reassure her, but Susie pushed away.

“But I set this in motion,” she insisted. “I killed Sammy. I drove Cordelia to this.”

“None of this would have happened if it hadn’t been for Joey,” Henry said firmly, putting his hands on her shoulders. “He’s the one who did this. Not you. He trapped you here. He killed you all. This is _his_ fault. Not yours.”

“But I-”

“No buts,” Henry cut her off. “You can’t blame yourself for Joey’s failures.” He’d already made that mistake one too many times.

Susie visibly hesitated, looking away from him. “I’ve still done terrible things here,” she said.

“I’m pretty sure everyone down here has done terrible things,” Henry replied with a weak laugh. “It doesn’t exactly excuse what you did, but…What’s important is that you’re trying to be better.”

Susie looked back at him. For a moment, her expression was blank. Then she smiled wearily. “Well, aren’t you a well of positivity?”

“If I didn’t try to have hope, I would have lost it a long time ago,” Henry laughed, equally weary.

“Fair,” Susie conceded. “Thank you. For, um…For trying to make me feel better. I appreciate it.”

“You’re welcome,” Henry replied, removing his hands from her shoulders.

Boris took this opportunity to hug Susie, nuzzling his muzzle against her face. Susie couldn’t help but laugh, patting Boris’ head.

“Thank you.” Her voice was quiet. Boris just kept hugging her.

Henry knew he might have been projecting a bit, but this felt like Boris’ attempt to assure Susie that everything was alright, that he didn’t hold what she’d done against her. Things were different this time around. And he’d do his best to make sure they stayed different.

If they were lucky, maybe they would even be able to get out.

Just then, the door to the safe house opened once more. The three on the cots looked up to see Allison and Tom stepping inside. They looked relatively unscathed, which gave Henry some hope. Boris bounded up to greet them, hugging first Tom then Allison before returning to the cots.

“How’d it go?” He asked.

“Pretty well!” Allison replied with a smile. “We ran into a few Searchers and Butcher clones, but they didn’t give us much trouble.”

“So, no sign of Cordelia or… ** _him_**?” Susie asked slowly.

“They’re keeping to the lower levels,” Tom said as he laid his ax down on the table. “Staying around the Lost One village.”

“So, the machine on the first level is our best bet,” Henry concluded.

“Yep.”

Henry took a deep breath, trying to center himself as Allison and Tom joined the group in the cot area. He could do this, he told himself. This time around, he could fix things. He could save his friends.

“We’re really doing this, huh?” Susie said, laughing nervously. Boris hugged her again.

“We certainly are,” Allison laughed as well, although her laugh was more weary than nervous. “I do hope it’ll help things.”

“Knowing Lawrence, he’ll probably stick his foot in his mouth the second he sees the girl,” Tom grumbled, shaking his head and folding his arms.”

“We’ll just have to see,” Henry said. “But right now, we should probably rest. We’ve got a big day tomorrow.”

The others exchanged glances before nodding and beginning to get themselves ready to sleep. Henry was right. They had to be rested and ready in case something went wrong.

Because something almost certainly would.

.

Joey was not happy.

He’d been unhappy the second his story had started to deviate from its usual form, but now he’d lost all control over it and it was maddening.

He’d been a tad irritated when Susie had managed to get ahold of Sammy and take his heart, but he’d figured he could work with it. Then Susie had regained some semblance of sanity and taken up with Tom and Allison. Also irritating, but he’d thought he could work with it. He hadn’t paid much attention to Cordelia’s little murder tantrum. After all, it wasn’t like she’d been killing anyone important. But then the Ink Demon had ruined everything.

That worthless failure had destroyed the story Joey had worked so hard to create.

Suddenly, Joey couldn’t control them anymore. Everything had changed. He’d tried so many times to set them back on track, but nothing had worked.

The characters were driving the story now.

And he hated it

He tapped his pen on the storyboard pages, glowering at the scenes before him. Cordelia and the Demon were just outside the Lost One’s village, discussing some foolish plans to destroy Henry and the others, while Henry’s group slept in their safehouse.

Cordelia had become so frustratingly unpredictable with the addition of the Demon’s ink. One moment she could carry on a rational conversation as though nothing was wrong and the next she’d fly into a blind rage, lashing out and destroying all those who got in her way. She’d almost killed Henry multiple times now, and Joey really couldn’t have that. Worst of all, the Demon encouraged this volatility, eager to have her all to itself.

And then there was the situation with Henry’s little group. He had thought Susie defecting to Allison and Tom wouldn’t be a problem, but it was turning out to be quite the thorn in his side. Susie’s vouching for Henry, as well as Boris’ presence and trust in Henry, had somewhat lessened Tom’s distrust. Thus they were all working together to defend one another rather than it being the bitter fight for survival it had originally been. And if they managed to drag Sammy from the void and he was in his right mind as well, then they would have another ally.

Joey let out a huff of irritation, leaning back in his chair and tapping his pen against his lips. There was no guarantee of getting Henry down to the machine to play the reel like this. There was no guarantee he wouldn’t try to go after Joey. There was no guarantee Cordelia and the Demon wouldn’t try to come after him.

He had to find a way to drag this story back onto the track he wanted. Had to find some way to get Henry down to the larger machine to play the end reel. Looking back at the storyboard page, he let out a thoughtful hum. Maybe if he just gave them a bit of… _direction_ he could still salvage this story.

He set pen to paper and began to write.

.

Cordelia had been saying something about flushing the traitors out when she suddenly fell silent.

“ ** _Cordelia?_** ” The Ink Demon asked with a frown. “ ** _Is something wrong?_** ”

Cordelia didn’t answer. Her whole body went stiff, as though she had touched a livewire.

The puppet strings tightened.

The Ink Demon stiffened as well, recognizing what was happening. Cordelia jerked, limbs spasming as she attempted to fight against the invisible force exerting its influence on her. Her ink bubbled and roiled like a pot of boiling water. The Ink Demon drew away, preparing to be forced back into the damned role once more. Or at the very least for the story to be reset. If Joey could force his influence onto Cordelia, a relatively minor character who now possessed some part of the Demon, he would be able to take back the Demon.

But the outcome he’d been expecting never came.

Instead, Cordelia let out an unholy scream, a cloud of gold exploding around her, and dropped to her knees. Her hair formed a curtain around her face as the horns rose once more from her crown. Claws dug into the floor, leaving deep gouges in the wood. Her veil fluttered to the ground behind her, displaced by the sudden movements.

“ ** _Cordelia?_** ” The Ink Demon repeated, tentatively taking a step toward her.

Cordelia said something in response, but the words were too muffled to make out.

“ ** _Are you alright?_** ” The Ink Demon knelt beside her.

Cordelia looked up. Her eye glowed gold, the sclera a deep inky black. Black trails of inky tears ran down her face.

“I’m going to kill him,” she whispered, baring her sharpened teeth. “It wasn’t enough to destroy our lives. He had to trap us in a fucking story too!”

The Ink Demon blinked, then smiled wide. She _knew_. She’d seen the puppet strings and she _knew_.

“ ** _It was a cruel trick to play indeed,_** ” he agreed, helping her to her feet. “ ** _But now that you know the truth…I think there’s something that can be done._** ”

“Tell me,” she said, grabbing his hand in both of hers. Fury burned in her eyes. “Tell me how I can make him pay.”

The Ink Demon’s smile widened. “ ** _Just follow me. I’ll show you where the boundaries are weakest._** ”

He couldn’t help but feel giddy as he began to lead her to the upper levels, to the door that led to Joey's world.

Finally…Finally he could break the barriers.

Finally...he could destroy Joey Drew

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I commissioned a bunch of drawings of the Prophetess  
> https://queenofcats17.tumblr.com/post/637959542613901312/i-commissioned-morgans-doodles-for-a-drawing-of  
> https://queenofcats17.tumblr.com/post/630718720851001344/maulan-reverie-and-a-toony-commission-for  
> https://queenofcats17.tumblr.com/post/630074780032401409/i-commissioned-mwolf0epsilon-to-draw-the-ink
> 
> And also a friend drew a picture of her with their oc  
> https://queenofcats17.tumblr.com/post/630174827186208768/this-looks-amazing

**Author's Note:**

> Check out more art of the Prophetess on my Tumblr at @queenofcats17


End file.
